


Thoughts and Discussions on 'The Star and The Hourglass'

by SilverGlass83



Category: Dragonlance - Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman
Genre: F/M, Headcanon, Language, Other: See Story Notes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-01
Updated: 2019-07-25
Packaged: 2019-11-07 03:21:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17952665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverGlass83/pseuds/SilverGlass83
Summary: This is simply a place where I share my thoughts in regards to my fanfic story, The Star and The Hourglass. A story set in the Dragonlance world and stars Raistlin Majere and my original character Yurielle.Here I will go over different aspects of my head canon and various thoughts and theories I have or have come across while writing my fanfic.





	1. My Life with Dragonlance

**Author's Note:**

> Again, I do not own the character of Raistlin Majere nor anything that has to do with the Dragonlance world. This story is simply for my own entertainment.  
> I will be adding different chapters as I go and think of things I want to discuss. This may become a jumbled hot mess but I guess we'll see what happens! I tend to ramble and get off track A LOT and these notes will be far less edited than the story itself. SORRY in advance! >_<

The year is about 1995ish (I can't remember because I'm old and don't feel like doing the math!) But I was in middle school (GOD I’m aging myself!) and as all young and awkward nerdy teen girls, I loved being in the school library.

Now at this time I really hadn't read too many books. My interests solely consisted of movies and video games and stupid boy bands on the radio.

Anyway... see what I mean about rambling?

Here I am in the schools library, this is in the days when the internet was new and made sounds when you connected to it and I was looking through the 'Fantasy' aisle. I can still remember where that aisle was and what books lined those shelves. But one book in particular caught my eye so I checked it out and took it home.

That book, was Dragons of Winter Night by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman.

Now I know what you're thinking! Hey that's book two of the trilogy! Didn't you know that?

No, I had no idea it was the second book. I really just loved the cover. Which, for that run of the printing, was Larry Elmore's second painting with the blue dragon looking at Tasslehoff with Kitiara in her blue dragon armor holding her helmet.

Why was I drawn to this book? Well, I guess I really love the color blue. Plus I love dragons and that armored chick on the front looked BADASS! So, as I said, I took the book home and started to read it.

Yeah I was a bit confused at parts and didn't really get what was going on. But I immediately fell in love with the characters and the world. The Nightmare of Lorac blew my freaking mind and when Sturm died, a part of me died too. It was my first character death within a storybook. It seriously rocked my little teenage world.

Now, Sturm never was one of my favorite characters. But he's noble and stands up for what he believes in and the small glimpse you get of him in Winter Night I think are some of his best moments. In that book you really see him shine.

Then, he's just gone in one last selfless act.

So naturally I went back and read Dragon's of Autumn Twilight and Dragons of Spring Dawning. I loved every second of that trilogy! Then that summer, Dragon's of Summer Flame was released. I had to reserve a copy through the towns library. Now I grew up in a small rural town and they had to order in the book for me because fantasy was not something they kept super stocked up on the library shelves. But I read it and again I was super confused as to why Raistlin was dead, who these youngins where, ect.

Again, reminder that this was in the infant days of the internet and I didn't realize that other books had come out in the meantime that spanned between these books. I just thought naively that Summer Flame would naturally come right after Spring Dawning right?

Anyway.... Life went on and I grew up.

The 20th Anniversary of Star Wars was remastered and re released into theaters and my focus then shifted from fantasy to sci-fi and I plunged into a world far far away. This obsession would carry me through the rest of my high school years. (and when I say obsession, I mean obsessed! I have a hand made Jedi costume and had several senior pictures taken of me in it with some of my collection! **Sigh** embarrassing!!!! But **Shrug** what do ya do?)

Fast forward through the next several years through college to my first full time job. I moved three hours away from my hometown and began my career. Only to have it end in 6 months!

Laid off and without any direction to go. I moved back home defeated and forlorn.

And once again, Dragonlance was there and this time pulled me through a really difficult time when I was lost and uncertain in my path.

As I searched for a new job and tried to figure out what to do with my life, I was at the bookstore one day and saw the boxed set for the Dragonlance Chronicles trilogy with the beautiful artwork by Matt Stawicki. I decided why not! I didn't actually OWN the books. I just remembered reading them so many years ago and loving them. So I purchased it and devoured them within days. Now, with the internet much older, I was able to discover much easier the order in which the books should be read. I then went out and got the next boxed set for the Legends Trilogy and finally read Raistlin's doomed campaign of trying to reach godhood.

It seriously broke my heart! I spent days and days just empty after reading those last few lines. Especially, “Look Raist... bunnies” God damn I was a mess. And again, I couldn't believe how characters from a book could ruin me. I continued to read as many of the Dragonlance books as I could get my hands on. Including the War of the Souls. Which, may I just put in right here and now, I really don't enjoy. I mean I DID then, but now, I just find they are a bummer and I can't get through them anymore. Back then, I read them because Raistlin showed up like a handful of times and I kept going because I wanted MORE of Raistlin. Any tiny tidbit about what he was doing and what was going on, I just needed.

And so now, here we are. Many, MANY years later. I hadn't given Dragonlance much of a thought since. I read through the whole series about 2 years ago (couldn't get through war of souls, again, freaking bummer of a story and I just don't care for how depressing it really is and how much the world changed but that's another rant)

However Raistlin Majere has been forever in my top 3 favorite fictional characters of all time.

Fast forward again to late October early November of 2018 and I'm on one of my Youtube adventures. Somehow I get on Dragonlance videos. Maybe I was watching videos on Dungeons and Dragons? (Which, by the way, is my new obsession! And I honestly did not really know or understand until I started playing D&D that Dragonlance is heavily connected to the tabletop RPG)

Anyway somehow I stumbled upon the Russian Musical. At first I was like, no way is this any good!

I was SO wrong.

I absolutely fell in love! Now, as many probably know, there are 2 versions of the musical out there. A Youtube Search for Dragonlance Russian Musical will get you to them. Most that you'll find have had subtitles added. If ANYONE on the KrynnSub team happens to read this, you are my absolute heroes!

As I watched them and fell in love, I honestly can't say which one I enjoy more. Both are good imo. Each has a different feel and each main singer brings a different dynamic to Raistlin. But holy moly I quickly fell into a world of needing to explore Raistlin as a character! I really needed to figure him out, get inside his head, solve his problems and give him the happy ending I think we all want in our hearts for him to have.

So, I started writing and the Star and the Hourglass was born!

Also during this time I had just found Archive of Our Own as I had just finished going through a FF7/FF8 fanfic that I wrote with a friend so many years ago. And decided to join and begin uploading that fic to the site.

I really didn't expect to share my Raistlin fanfic with anyone. But as I wrote and read other fanfic stories on here. I was seriously inspired to share it. There are so many good fanfics out there!

Thank you to everyone else who endeavors to tell Raistlin's story. I know no two are alike in how we view the Hourglass mage, but they have all made me want to continue my own story and version of him, so again, thank you!

So enough about Dragonlance within my own life, let us start to explore my reasons and thoughts for the fic!

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to comment and join in on the discussion! I'm always up for some constructive criticism and I love hearing from you all!


	2. Why The Star and The Hourglass?

Well, as I said, I really wanted to explore the character of Raistlin Majere! I feel like he's a very deep character with a lot of potential that I feel like we never truly got to see because of the mix of the plethora of other characters he spends of his time with in most of the books.

Not only that, I also wanted to write a redemption story. One where Raistlin chooses love over his own ambition and self destructive tendencies. I wanted to get inside his head and try to solve why he made the choices he did. Why he felt the way he did and what shaped the young man into a force that went up against a goddess.

I honestly feel that, deep down, Raistlin is a vastly misunderstood individual. One that, I believe anyway, would have perhaps grown and developed differently if only he had allowed himself to follow his own heart.

Rereading through the book series as I've been writing this story has only reinforced my firm belief that Raistlin Majere has a vast ability to be compassionate and caring. But he has built such a thick wall of bitterness and self loathing around himself over the years that he cannot bring himself to be vulnerable.

Repeatedly, especially in the first books, we see him care for those outcast and down trodden through no faults of their own. For instance I just read the chapters in Dragons of Autumn Twilight when they are in Xak Tsaroth when Raistlin charms the gully dwarf Bupu to befriend him. Yes he has the woman under a spell, but he goes back for her! When they are all trying to get into the lift as the city is crumbling, Raistlin runs back into the chaos only to return to the others, carrying the gully dwarf! Then, the next day, (and from a D&D stand point, much later than a charm or friendship spell would ever last) he is woken by the sound of her crying. And in this scene we really see Raistlin. The tender, kind man that he really can be. He comforts her, smiles at her, and prays to whatever gods may be listening to watch over her.

After reading these chapters, I knew without a doubt that I was writing the correct story.

Raistlin Majere is deserving of redemption!

Sure he did some shitty stuff during the books. Yes he made some dubious choices and yes there were times when the man was an all out asshole! But I think we can all agree it stems out of a place of self protection.

Then of course, there was the whole deciding to become a god story line.

Now, don't get me wrong, I LOVE the Legends trilogy. Those books are among my most favorite out of any series I have ever read.

But seriously, it just doesn't seem to make much sense why anyone would think this would ever work. I just don't understand how such an intelligent man would ever come to the conclusion that taking on the pantheon of gods is a good idea! I mean wow. So here's my head canon about the whole situation.

Honestly, I read these books the first time when I was young and well before I even had any knowledge that they were connected to Dungeons and Dragons or any sort of tabletop RPG. Honestly I never really thought that him having Fistandantilus within him would have truly had any impact on how he developed. But now, as I reread the books, I've come to decide that Fistandantilus had a much larger impact on Raistlin's inner thoughts and ideas. More so than even he ever realized.

Now, I'm still in the Chronicles trilogy so it's taking me a while to remember a lot of details surrounding things, so some of this might change. So forgive my ramblings and inconsistencies. This is, after all, just a document for me to try to sort out my thoughts and share them with you all.

Fistandantilus was a horrid, horrid individual. I have recently downloaded Fistandantilus Reborn on audio book (read by the AMAZING Liam O'Brien! I recommend you check it out, his voice is like butter ~_~) I have yet to finish it as of writing this. But I wanted to mention it as I'll be doing a full section on Fistandantilus at some point. So this is more of a reminder to myself to do so!

Anyway, back to why 'The Star and The Hourglass'.

You may disagree with me. Perhaps Raistlin deserves the fate he chose. Perhaps he was truly irredeemable and he walked the path to destruction of his own will, not influenced by one of Krynn's more infamous and evil people in history.

But I think he is deserving of another path.

And so we come to the second reason of why I'm writing this fic. I am a HOPELESS Romantic at heart! **cue sappy music**

Now, for many years, I was on the Crysania/Raistlin as a couple train. I also enjoy Raistlin/Dalamar fanfic trains as well. I mean, love is love, and I don't care who fills the gap in Raistlin's heart!

There's so many great stories out there and again, reading through them, I wanted to explore Raistlin's heart and how this would play a role in his redemption.

I find myself wondering what would have happened if Raistlin had ever met someone he felt was on his level. Or at least close to it. I mean lets face it, the man has a GIANT ego!

But what if he met someone who caught his focus enough that he was forced to pay attention to them and, over time, what if that person began reminding him of what he was giving up on his road to power. What if this person was able to renew Raistlin's faith in those around him as well as himself as a person deserving of happiness?

What if this person forced Raistlin to face his own humanity and emotions? What if this person began to stir the feelings of love and kindness within the man, who, by the end of the War of the Lance, had grown quite bitter and dark.

Would this person be able to steer the archmage off the path he had begun to walk down towards godhood?

Well that is how Yurielle was created. I plan on having a whole discussion on Yurielle as well as Raistlin. But I don't feel that right now is the time as I don't want to have too many spoilers for the fic drop before their time.

On that note, this little endevor to delve into my fanfic will be updated as I see fit. I don't want to give too many things away before major events happen. So my plan on updating this will be, discussing characters here and there and adding chapters after major plot points. So from here on out, things probably won't flow well together if you're reading this chapter by chapter. I will do my best to add appropriate links to both this document as well as live on the story as I update that.

Again, thank you to everyone who is hanging in there with me as I create this story. Its going to take some twists and turns. Probably some will be very unexpected and perhaps some will be cookie cutter tropes that you'll just roll your eyes at. That's fine. I am by no means a professional writer. I try my hardest to be original but my works are far from perfect and are first and foremost for my own entertainment. So thank you for sticking with me!

The fact that there ARE people who are reading this and enjoying my story telling continues to tickle me pink every single day and I can't express how grateful I am for your continued support!

Stay tuned for more!

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to comment and join in on the discussion! I'm always up for some constructive criticism and I love hearing from you all!


	3. The Timeline and Canon

So as far as how canon my story is, I'm basically allowing all books to be fairly accurate up until just before the Legends trilogy. My story takes place in the years between Dragons of the Hourglass Mage and Time of the Twins.

From what I can tell, only a few years technically passed between when Raistlin entered the Tower at Palanthas and him meeting Crysania. From what I can figure out its only ABOUT 3 years. Now for me, that just seems like a ridiculously short amount of time from entering a Tower literally filled with ancient and forgotten books and items, mastering them, and forming his plans at godhood. Raistlin's awesome and powerful, but yeesh, to me he'd be a kid in a candy store at the wealth he's uncovered and probably spent the first few weeks just rolling around in all the books he's found. Okay not literally but that's what I would be doing! LOL

In all seriousness, logically he's be devoting massive amounts of his time just getting that place in order as well. After centuries of being abandoned I see the Tower as probably pretty run down. Though, because of its cursed state, I don’t see it as infested with vermin or anything of the like. Just very dusty and things were probably in quite the state of chaos if the mages had left in a hurry in the days before Rannoch cursed it.

From what I’ve been able to find, it was in the days before the Cataclysm and the King Priest had decided that all mages were evil and the forces of Palanthas had surrounded the Tower. Other Towers were also under siege and the wizards destroyed the Towers at Daltigoth and Goodlund rather than allowing the Kingpriest to take hold of them.

The destruction was so massive that that the Kingpriest decided to negotiate with the wizards to with drawl from the Towers at Palanthas and Istar, leaving them to only have Wayreth (which because of the forest around it, only wizards can get to) The Kingpriest took Istar's Tower and was not able to take Palanthas before Rannoch cursed it.

To me, this all happened very rapidly. So fast in fact that much of what was in the Tower at Palanthas was left behind as there was probably panic amongst the wizards. Now, what I don't get is where Fistandantilus was during all this. Because he would have been alive during this time frame. I'm thinking (and I honestly have no idea what connection Fistandantilus had to Rannoch if any) that he had a fellow member of his order, the black robe Rannoch, curse the tower in such a way that only Fistandantilus, or one with his essence could ever reclaim the tower again. Thus why only Raistlin was ever able to enter it again three hundred years later. And because this was probably some master plan of Fistandantilus, much of his personal books and notes where hidden within the Tower. Because, after all, only he'd be able to enter it again and it was the safest place on Krynn for his research to be hidden. Again, that's just my own theories and basically why the Tower at Palanthas is stocked full of hidden goodies that the Conclave just salivate over getting their hands on.

So in my story, I figure about five years have passed since the end of the War of the Lance. The War ended in 353 AC (after cataclysm) and Raistlin WOULD have gone back in time at around 356 AC. But in my story, it is around 358 AC when he is just beginning to really delve and start putting into motion his first plans and research into defeating Takhisis and becoming a god himself. Making Raistlin to be what, 32-33 years old at this point?

He's no where near ready to start much of anything, hence why in the first chapter, he was going to the Library to see what information he could find there.

Which brings me to my next bit that I totally made up. As far as I know, there is no hidden dark crypt below the Library in Palanthas. As far as I've ever been able to tell, all books are held within the Library itself. But there would be no actual spellbooks or things of that nature. But in my mind I kept thinking about the forbidden section in Hogwarts from Harry Potter. I mean there HAS to be forbidden texts written by ancient and dangerous individuals that would be valuable to the history of the Krynn. No one in their right mind would want these texts available to the general public and only the most learned scholars even know the existence of the crypts were ancient and evil books are kept and preserved. Also it's been 300 years since the cataclysm and the wizards are still not held in very high regard. What would simple adventures do if they had ever stumbled upon some long forgotten tome during their journeys? To me, they'd take it to a place like the Great Library and, if not magical, the Aesthetics would put the tomes in the crypts. At least, that's what I think would happen.

Now, and this may be spoilery to my story so skip to after the ***** if you don't want to read any spoilers!,

 

SPOILERS:

 

 

 

 

I do have Caramon and Tika getting married right after the War and already having kids. So Tanin is born pretty much right away (heck maybe Tika is unknowingly pregnant in the last days of the war, I mean it is implied that they get it on at least once in the books) and Sturm comes along right after and Palin about a year or 2 after Sturm. So the first two are nearly 5 years old by this point and Palin is just a baby. (there will **eventually** be chapters with them!)

Also Jenna, Justarius's daughter, is already a full grown adult and wearing the red robes and running her shop, the Three Moons in Palanthas.

If I were following the canon timeline. None of these characters would be born yet. But since, as far as I know, the circumstances around Jenna's birth is a mystery. We don't ever find out who her mother is so for me, it doesn't make much difference when she was born as all books form here on out are obsolete.

 

 

 

*******

 

Okay spoilers done!

Now as I said, I pretty much HATE the Fifth Age. I mean the stories are interesting. Dragons of Summer Flame is pretty good. But anything after that is just, in my mind, a huge bummer. So really I'm completely disregarding all of that and the events that happen within my story will ultimately change the future timeline from here on out.

Okay I think that pretty much sums up what my thoughts are on this subject right now. I'll create a new 'chapter' if I think of anything else!

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to comment and join in on the discussion! I'm always up for some constructive criticism and I love hearing from you all!


	4. Raistlin's Eyes and the Curse of  Raelanna

Okay. First of all, and excuse my language here, but FUCK Par-Salian! He can go rot in old man hell! Why he ever thought that giving a curse that would cause everything to decay away to a young man who obviously already has social issues and self esteem problems is beyond me!

HOW would that make anyone become compassionate?! I mean Jeepers EFFING @*&^#&^%! **FLIPS TABLE AND GOES SUPER SAYIAN 3**

Okay, anger outburst over.

So here is what we know about the Curse of Raelanna. Only one other person is documented to having this curse placed upon them and that is the woman Raelanna herself to punish her for her vanity and cruelty.

I am often baffled by how this curse is said to work. So Raistlin sees 'all things as time changes them'. 

So supposedly the curse withers everything away. Does this mean stonework and buildings and EVERYTHING? Like how can you even function? Wouldn't it be super disorienting to be looking at something and have the whole thing just turn to ash in front of you? Like “Oh I'm making cookies, well the batter just turned to ooze and the table is now a pile of dust at my feet well crap now the floor is gone!” Where does it end? Does he see everyone as a skeleton walking around if he keeps staring at them? Does everything revert to normal when he blinks only to begin to re-decay? How this doesn't completely drive Raistlin instantly insane is beyond me. Of course, one could argue that this does slowly wither away his sanity. But yeesh who can blame him?

This is MY personal take on the curse and how I'm handling it in my story.

As far as inanimate objects go, the curse has pretty much left Raistlin fairly color blind. Everything is dulled into shades of very faded color and washed in grays. He can still discern what colors should be but I'm sure some similar shades are difficult. Anything made of cloth just doesn't rot and fall away and decay into nothing, they just all look drab to him. Perhaps why he just always chooses to his black robes and wears dark simple clothes underneath. I personally don't see him as being in the height of fashion. So under his robes he just wears simple and practical clothing in dark shades. Goth side coming out maybe? X'D

For things like buildings and objects around him, I feel like those things would decay way to slowly for even the curse to really effect. Maybe buildings or objects that are already old and decaying would appear more so to him. But nothing just crumbles away to dust in front of him.

People and living things to Raistlin I feel is where the real tragedy and major cause of heartache would be.

I'll start with plants. Trees, shrubs and flowers would yes quickly wither and fade away into husks of their former selves. The leaves and petals don’t just magically fall off, they just wilt and become lifeless. All color fades from them and maybe once reaching the 'death' point, the once living thing is completely black and white to him? He's forced to watch all moisture within the cells of the plant wither away as the beauty of its color be leeched until its just a withered mockery of what it once was. For this reason, he can still discern his own spell components and herbs and such. The dried plants are already dead, but still have their basic shape and of course smell, so he can still discern one from another when he needs to use them or is preparing them.

Now for people and animals. Like I stated, I don't feel like they'd rot away until they are all just skeletons walking around. How MORBID! I think the real tragedy is watching someones face lose all its coloring and sinking into a mummified husk of what it once was. To me that's what Raistlin sees when he looks at people, a bunch of withered dried out shells that are just washed out versions of themselves.

I think he sees a person as they normally are when he first meets them. He gets to SEE them for a few fleeting seconds before they just begin to melt into a husk. To me, that’s still pretty fucking morbid and would be a huge bummer in anyone’s day. To see something that is pleasing to the eye but then know and be forced to WATCH it decay. I'm sure at some point he gets at least numb to this fact. But still... I can't even imagine what that’s like. So for me, I think that Raistlin had pretty much hermited himself away from having to interact with most people. I think that, even for him, it's hard to watch people rot.

Not rot away into something as gruesome as say, a zombie. Their skin isn't falling off in my mind. But maybe because the skin is mummified it exaggerates the sunken look of eyes and makes the skin look tighter and more grotesque. Hair doesn't just fall out either, but rather like with plants probably becomes just shades of washed out gray and looks dry and brittle to him.

Now does everything revert when he blinks?

I don't think so necessarily. To me that would be supremely disorienting and would make a person very dizzy and nauseous. At least I know I would quickly become sick from it.

I think that, with people especially, if he's around them for a long period of time, they mummify to a certain point and stop. Then maybe, say after a long time away from that person, maybe like past 24 hours, when he sees them again the curse's effects have worn off and he can see them as normal again only to have the curse reclaim them. Argh that's so depressing! **hugs Raistlin**

Now as for the long lived races like elves. For me, they still do succumb to the curse as well. But very, very slowly. Like if a normal person (human for example) withers away in... lets say 5 minutes until they are a dried out husk. Then an elf would take a couple hours. Elves in the Dragonlance world are not immortal as they are in Lord of the Rings. They do age but it takes them hundreds of years to even begin to show age.

Elves to Raistlin are one of the few living things that stay at least somewhat normal in his eyes. The colors of hair, skin and eyes probably fade away the fastest, just becoming gray washes but they retain their features. In my head canon, this is part of the reason Raistlin allowed Dalamar to be his apprentice.

I'll be getting into my canon on Dalamar and Raistlin's relationship in another 'chapter'. So for now, I'll just say that in my mind, Dalamar is one of the few things that offer even a tiniest bit of respite from Raistlin's curse. And this is something that Raistlin is secretly grateful to the dark elf for. If nothing else the presence of Dalamar helped keep Raistlin from completely falling into a sort of depressed madness.

Those are my thoughts and how I treat Raistlin's cursed eyes. Let me know what your ideas are!

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to comment and join in on the discussion! I'm always up for some constructive criticism and I love hearing from you all!


	5. Into the Heart and Mind of the Hourglass Mage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is my attempt at a character study. Once again I do not own the character of Raistlin Majere. He is property of Wizards of the Coast and I do not claim that my views are reflective of the companies or of the authors involved with him. I'm just an obsessed fangirl who is fascinated by him. These are my thoughts and how I am personally framing him within my own headcanon in regards to the setting of my own fanfic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please be aware that I will be mentioning mental illness within this chapter. See my notes within the paragraphs on my reasons. I only wanted to mention this ahead of time in case this is an upsetting or uncomfortable subject for you.

First of all, here's some nerdy facts about Raistlin that I've gathered from D&D sources as well as from various other places.

 

Born: Corij (which is June for us) 17th, 326 AC (After Cataclysm) The Zodiac sign for Raistlin's birthday is Gemini AKA the Twins!

Height: 5 feet 9 inches

Weight: 135 pounds (Which to me really doesn't seem to be low enough for him to be as thin and frail as the books make him out to be! On the standard BMI chart he is well within the normal range. If he's really as frail and weak as we're made to think I would seriously put him far, far lower.)

Birth Hair: Light brown (perhaps a hint of auburn)

Birth Eyes: Light blue. Very pale and piercing.

Birth skin tone: Fair skinned. I imagine him as extremely pale as he's usually indoors and doesn't take part in physical activities so he probably doesn't see too much sun. Probably burns really bad/easily!

**How to Pronounce Raistlin:** RAIST-lin

Raistlin comes from "wasting man" and Caramon (his brother) comes from "caring man." (Pronounced CARE-uh-mon) Somewhere I read that Margaret Weis once said that they named the twins this way for a reason because Raistlin is “Wasting away” and Caramon is “Always so Caring”

Their last name, Majere (pronounced mah-jeer) is also the name of the Krynnish god Majere, who rules over knowledge and is also known as Mantis of the Rose, Master of Mind, and the Dreamsender, The Even-Handed God, and represents the godly force of discipline. Majere believes the way for the soul to become better is through discipline and hard work. His celestial symbol is a Rose and he sits among the Gods of Good in the pantheon.

 

 

Alright, alright! I know what you're thinking, enough nerdy facts!

NOW onto my head canons on Raistlin and how I view his character and am treating him in my fanfic. I just want to add quickly to please keep in mind that these are my own thoughts and interpretations of how I view Raistlin Majere. I am by no means trying to change your image of Raistlin and you have every right to disagree with me! This is merely the framework that I have worked out for myself for which to build my story with.

 

 

Okay, as I said, the main reason for this fanfic is because I really wanted to explore the character of Raistlin Majere and give him the redemption story I feel that he is deserving of. Not only that, I wanted to see Raistlin's journey as he rediscovers his own humanity and how he would go about letting himself be vulnerable to another person.

So we have to ask ourselves, is Raistlin even capable of love?

Because, lets face it, Raistlin Majere is kind of a coldhearted asshole more often than not!

But that's just the thing, he didn't start out that way. Nor, do I think, that that is his true nature.

I want to know and explore WHY.

So here I go to try to dive into a very complex character. One I think we can all agree on stirs something different within each of us and connects to a very wide array of people more so than most other characters. For example, those who are weak or sick themselves might be drawn to him because of this or those who are considered the quiet or overlooked one can relate to his withdrawn nature. Those that want to feel powerful despite their 'low standing' can look up to him and cheer for him on his road to power. Because of this, to me at least, I feel like Raistlin, out of all the other Dragonlance characters, has the widest audience that he connects to.

So again, here are my thoughts. Forgive me if I ramble!

Since starting writing this fanfic, I have gone back and began to reread the books starting with the prequels about Raistlin's childhood. So there is a good place to start looking for clues as to how and why Raistlin became the way that he did.

In the first few chapters of Soulforge, we are introduced to a six year old Raistlin. He's skinny and unwashed, showing signs of basic neglect as his mother was often within one of her trance like states and his father was out for long periods at a time cutting wood. All Raistlin had was his twin brother Caramon and older half sister Kitiara.

Kitiara, who was just a young teen herself, did her best to raise the boys and keep them fed. We meet Raistlin when he is introduced to the white robed wizard Antimodes who quickly learns that Raistlin is no ordinary little boy. Quite and aloof, it is obvious that Raistlin is much, much smarter than he lets on. Also, and this may be a personal interpretation, Raistlin as a child is a bit of a creepy kid! Like the one that just kind of hovers in the background staring at everything, soaking it all up and making little plans inside their heads. We all know or have known a kid like that. He's just a bit unsettling in how he views things going on around him and his pleasure had Caramon's loyalty at even such a young age gives Antimodes pause. Already we see that even at six years old, Raistlin is a cunning and extremely intelligent boy with a knack for manipulating his brother to do what Raistlin wants.

We also quickly find out that, even at that young age, Raistlin is very ambitious. His last words to the white robe before he leaves is 'someday fat innkeepers bow to me' and the mage feels dread and foreboding at these words.

As the book goes on, we see that Raistlin has, at least some desire, as all young boys do, to play and run with the other kids. But because of his weak body, he can't. He runs out of breath and just does not have the stamina to keep up with the others. So that, to me, signals that he is really quite a lonely little boy. Sure he has his twin, but watching his twin play and have fun is not nearly as satisfying as playing as well. So Raistlin becomes smarter than the rest and quickly this sets him apart.

We follow Raistlin as he grows and begins his schooling. Simple mundane everyday sort of life things. Always he feels above the others, always he thinks he is smarter. Maybe he is, maybe he isn't. But he certainly thinks so. So yes, even young, Raistlin Majere is vastly arrogant.

But still, I can't help but feel as I read that book, that Raistlin also feels lonely to me. He wants connection, he wants understanding and acceptance. He WANTS to find someone else that is on his level to just talk to and have an intelligent conversation with. But in Solace there is no such person for him. Raistlin knows this and it quickly becomes a bitter feeling within him, even at a young age.

Now let me back up a moment.

His mother, Rosamun, was probably the closest person he had to someone that understood him. For she would fall into trances. Something that was obviously a magical trait that she never learned to harness. It ultimately undid her and even at one point, because of the brainwashing from Widow Judith, his own mother turned on him and saw him as an abomination against the gods because of his faith in the magic. This hurt Raistlin deeply coming from his mother and I think it really had an impact on him more than he realized.

I think that the only other person he probably connected with on some intellectual level was Weird Meggin. Solace's shunned hedge witch and herbalist. We don’t' get many details about his time with her, but its stated more than once that he learned a great deal from the woman. Anything from herbs to illnesses. I think the old woman was perhaps one of the few people Raistlin actually enjoyed being around and learning from. I honestly wish she was talked about more and more written about Raistlin's time with her. From what little information we get about her I liken her to a druid of sorts based on what we are told. Which to me, in a D&D sort of setting, would make sense. (Also druid is my favorite class to play in any RPG or video game!)

When Raistlin first goes to learn magic, he is extremely excited. I think in his mind, he feels as if he will finally be around those like him. However, he is very quickly disappointed. His first teacher, Master Theobald, is a poor excuse for a mage (at least in Raistlin's mind). The white robe has few magical powers and doesn't seem like he even cares for teaching. The big fat man is cruel (whips Raistlin and other children with a stick constantly) and is also seemingly lazy. Raistlin already feels like he is smarter than the man.

His classmates are no better. Most are only there because their parents have nowhere else to send them. Very quickly they single out Raistlin and pick on him because, lets face it, Raistlin is far smarter than any of them and they are threatened by him. No one likes Raistlin. He is surrounded by those who shun him, tease him, ignore him, ridicule him etc. He is very much the runt of the litter with his weaker body and unstable health. He has no way to physically defend himself, so he turns to his mind and mental prowess and more than once outwits or humiliates his bullies at the school.

So even in taking his first steps on the path of magic, Raistlin is alone and outcast from his peers. Raistlin spends years alone at the school and goes weeks without seeing his family as he would board there during the winter months.

At home things are no better when he does get to go home. For his mother turns her back on him, shuns him and calls him a spawn of demons for his use and interest in magic. His father is rarely ever there, for the big man, who is almost exactly like Caramon, is always away cutting wood and working. Raistlin doesn't seem like he has much care for his father at all and just views him as the man who gave him life. But when the twins receive news that his father had been injured and lay dying, Raistlin's own reaction to his death surprises him. He cared more than he realized that he did.

After his father's death, Rosamun went into one of her deep trances and wasted away before the twin's eyes. Raistlin stayed by her side and tried his best to nurse her through the episode. However he merely sat by and watched her starve to death and succumb to her untamed magical abilities. Raistlin also blamed himself that the Widow Judith came into his mothers life and twisted her thoughts and drove a wedge between Raistlin and Rosamun because of his own magic. There are times when Raistlin questions if he will succumb to the same fate as his mother. If he will be able to master this all consuming force within himself or if he too will just waist away. This terrifies the young man and is always a constant fear of his.

The only person who is excited to see Raistlin is his twin Caramon.

Raistlin both loves and despises his twin. I'll get to their relationship in more detail in another 'chapter' but it's safe to say that Raistlin has long been jealous of his good-natured twin and is resentful of the fact that his brother is so well liked. Caramon has a healthy and strong body yet is lacking any sort of brain. Raistlin, more than once ponders the cruelness of the gods for doing this to him. But a part of him tries to find comfort that there must be gods, for there had to be an intelligent reason for why they would split a person in the way that they have.

Caramon – the body without the mind.

Raistlin – the mind without the body.

There are times, like when their mother lays dying, that Caramon's wisdom surprises Raistlin. Though, he is quick to point out, that wisdom is not intelligence. But I feel as though Caramon is far more in touch with his own humanity than is Raistlin and there are moments when the young mage realizes this and often reacts negatively to this, frustrated that his simple brother has this and he does not.

Now, we've seen Raistlin be an outcast among his fellow students. The friends of his twin do not even like him. Raistlin figures people only tolerate him because they like Caramon. But I don't think he ever really gave people much of a chance to actually get to know him. He's always sneering and sarcastic. We know that Raistlin keeps to himself and uses his cunning and sly mind to manipulate others into doing what he wants.

He can be cruel yes but again I have to ask myself, have we seen Raistlin capable of love?

There are several instances in the book where Raistlin reacts to relationships around him with disdain or outright disgust. He finds his half-sisters love affair with Tanis distasteful and considers his sister a whore for sleeping around with so many men (for we all know that Tanis isn't Kitiara's only love interest) Raistlin calls Caramon a pig for his twin's views on their sisters relationships and refuses to speak of such things with him. Often these discussions will leave Raistlin feeling uncomfortable.

So it's pretty obvious Raistlin's extremely inexperienced physically with any other person and the very subject of sex or intimacy makes him uncomfortable and he pretty much avoids even thinking about it at all costs.

It's pretty obvious that Raistlin has really low self esteem not only in these prequel books, but in all the books that he is in. More than once, in nearly every one of them, he himself will state how he is not attractive or he'll point out the fact that he is weak and fragile, often speaking of himself with contempt.

Alright, fair enough. We can gather that Raistlin has really low self esteem, especially when it comes to thinking of himself physically, so it's not outside the realm of thinking that he would not consider himself a likely partner for anyone. To me that hints at a deep insecurity about his own body. Which, at least in my mind, is further worsened by his curse and golden skin after his Test. He seems to focus and dwell on the fact that he is not a strong man often. The fact that he is not as attractive as his twin and that he is not build like him seems to be brought up a lot. So this makes me wonder if Raistlin indeed suffers from at least some form of anxiety or mental issues.

Body Dysmorphic Disorder is just something that comes to mind when I consider how Raistlin seems to feel about his own body. A Google search can inform you about this mental disorder if you have never heard of it before. I hadn't until a few years ago and it was really during my reread of the series that I started considering it.

Again this is my take on Raistlin's perceptions about himself. I'm not an expert on mental disorders nor am I making light on it or anyone suffering with their own issues in any way. I am merely putting a 'label' -for lack of a better word- to what I feel like he may be experiencing. So with this 'label' I am attempting to figure him out through this angle with something to use as a frame of reference as best as I am able too.

***NOTE**** I'm going to be honest, I vastly considered not even mentioning this because I am very much aware about how serious mental illness is and it can be a very intense subject for many people. But I also feel like we shouldn't look away from such things either and, if by chance someone who has never heard of the disorder goes to research it and find perhaps some answers that they themselves need, well then it is serving someone. For that I disclosed my reasons for feeling the need to name my perceived illness on what Raistlin may or may not be dealing with. I personally do not fully understand this disorder for I cannot place myself into the shoes of someone with it or of someone with severe anxiety or depression. Though I personally have struggled with anxiety to some degree in my own life, I know that my experiences are not the same as another persons.

***End of NOTE***

Also I think that Raistlin compares himself far too much to Caramon. His brother is really his only frame of reference to what woman seem to find attractive as he's grown and developed into adulthood. Well, his brother and also Tanis and Sturm which are also very athletic and handsome themselves.

Now I'm no psychologist, but even I can see that this is probably not a very healthy mental state to get trapped in and is part of the reasons I wonder if Raistlin does suffer from some form of mental issues at the very core of it.

Okay, deep breaths, that was heavy stuff.

So its obvious that Raistlin's uncomfortable with sex. But sex by no means equals LOVE. So again, is he even capable of love?

There is one love interest of Raistlin's in Soulforge and, of course, things do NOT go well for the young man. It's the spring of his 18th year and Raistlin has cured the Greenleaf baby of croup using one of his herbal remedies. Caramon is quick to point out to Raistlin that 'girls like that sort of thing' him helping babies and doing good.

Caramon tells Raistlin about how Miranda, the daughter of a wealthy clothier who recently arrived in Solace, was the aunt of the baby and wanted to tell Raistlin how wonderful it was the he had been able to save the little girl. Raistlin is stunned by this news, never for once thinking a girl had ever even paid him any mind.

He then thinks about how he has always had a secret bit of a crush on this girl but also, so too does Caramon. And Raistlin even admits to himself that he knows he's competing with Caramon. He always secretly competes with his twin who is serenely unaware of this fact.

Lost in his own thoughts, Raistlin hurries off to the school as he is now running late. And, of course by chance, he happens to run into Miranda herself. He's instantly flustered and tongue tied and she flirts with him which only flusters him more. It would be a cute scene but I saw right through her little flirting game that floozy! LOL

Anyway it's on pages 186-187 of Soulforge and I wont repeat everything that happens but the whole encounter pretty much puts Raistlin on cloud nine and he is INSTANTLY in love. He's so lost in his own fantasies he even thinks to himself he would give up his magic if she asked him! I mean... WHHAAAA? The boy has it BAD if he thinks he'll give up magic! Especially when we know he fears that it will devour him like it did his mother.

We all know what happens next, when Raistlin goes to call on her, he finds her already with Caramon doing what Caramon does best apparently. Poor Raistlin.

I feel like this was one of the biggest moments that really shaped Raistlin. Both in his thinking he doesn't need anyone else as well as further increasing his ever growing hate for his twin. For after the encounter, Raistlin thinks to himself that if he knew a spell that would have killed them both, he would have cast it. I think this was probably some foreshadowing of Raistlin killing the image of Caramon in his Test.

So okay, perhaps that's not a good example of love so much as it is just Raistlin really getting lost in thoughts of what it he thought it was to be in love. I honestly think that this is what Caramon is goes through every time a girl bats her eyelashes at him so its actually kind of funny to me that Raistlin reacted the same way. But where Caramon has probably learned lessons on relationships and feelings, Raistlin has never let himself become that vulnerable and he's pretty blindsided by the whole episode. So of course, he buries it all deep down and lets that thorn fester within him.

I think this totally put any future thoughts of relationships out of Raistlin's head forever. The rejection by Miranda only reenforced his self loathing and insecurities and further distances himself from his brother as well as other people in general.

Are there any other times Raistlin showed any sort of love to another?

Well, as I said I do believe he truly cared for his mother. He sat by her side and was her sole caretaker after their father died and she went into her last trance. Raistlin showed many times during Soulforge, as well as other books, how compassionate he could be.

The gully dwarf Bupu is one of my favorite examples in Dragons of Autumn Twilight. He charms her with magic to get her to help them. But he speaks to her gently and respectfully. Raistlin calls her 'little one' and even goes back to save her when the city of Xak Tsaroth begins to sink.

Repeatedly throughout the series he takes pity on the those who are hard pressed upon through no fault of their own. He knows with it is to suffer and can empathize with those in need.

So I'm going to finish up my thoughts with this. (Because its getting late and I'm certain I will rehash some of this in further installments)

Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. It is vastly important in ones ability to have compassion and to form lasting, meaningful connections with another person.

So yes. I personally believe that Raistlin Majere is capable of love. But ONLY if he'll let his heart _feel_ it. But there I think friends, is one of the big tragedies of his character.

For we never really see Raistlin allowing himself to take part in others happiness. If we are allowed glimpses into his personal feelings, they are often described as very intense and deep but hidden from everyone else.

We know that in the Legends Trilogy, Raistlin does indeed begin to fall in love with Crysania and begins to desire her. However he fears this will weaken him. He does not allow himself to show her affection nor does he allow himself to act on his feelings. These books do not happen within the time frame of my story, so I am attempting to explore the same bit of dynamic within Raistlin's relationship with Yurielle.

There are several more differing factors between Crysania and Yurielle of course but we may get into that another day. But I feel that the differences in the two characters is what, ultimately, helps Raistlin begin to rediscover his humanity.

I feel as though Raistlin has closed himself off from others because he doesn't want to be hurt and also because he doesn't see the need to let another get close to him. I think rejection is a deep fear and pain that he wishes to avoid at pretty much all costs. And so he's caught in a never ending loop of loneliness. He's surrounded by comrades and a twin who would die for him in a heartbeat. But he never connects to any of them, never lets anyone get close but at the same time, he wants acceptance. He wants understanding, but his very nature denies him this because he fears and hates what may come of letting himself be vulnerable.

Raistlin Majere is such a good character because he's a mirror to ourselves. To our own insecurities and issues, whatever those may be. His heart and mind is deep and complex and often reflects back to us the things we all wrestle with inside of us.

I'll close with this quote from Justarius who said it the best when it comes to summing up Raistlin - "We've all been laughed at one time in our lives. We've all been jealous of someone. We have felt pain and suffered, just as he has suffered. And we've all longed - just once - for the power to crush our enemies. We pity him. We hate him. We fear him - all because there is a little of him in each of us, though we admit it to ourselves only in the darkest part of the night."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for sticking with me in my thoughts. Have a great day everyone!  
> I posted this character study after we visited Raistlin's inner struggle as he sorts through his thoughts and feelings in regards to Yurielle within chapter 20 of "The Star and the Hourglass" Here is a link to that chapter: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16941390/chapters/42815684


	6. Yurielle and Her Wild Magic

So I think it's finally time that I go more into my original character Yurielle.

Where do I start?

To be honest, I had zero direction or idea of who or what this character would be when I started writing this story. I just knew there were be a black robed female wizard that was unlike any others and that there would be something about her that was different enough to catch Raistlin's eye.

To dive into Yurielle's character and what I am trying to do with her, I will attempt to explore a few different subjects. I will also of course go into Yurielle herself and touch on a few of her personal details here to start, but I feel that the most needed exploration is in her magic. So to talk about this I will be going into the game side of this universe and how it relates to Dragonlance and my story. I'll quickly touch on 5th edition D&D rules and game play. And finally how the Chaos War and the 5th Age changed Krynn forever. Especially in regards to the magic on it and what basically Yurielle's role in all of this is.

As Yurielle developed I made her a bit bossy and not afraid of the archmage and this in itself catches Raistlin off guard, as most people he meets are either afraid of him or highly intimidated by him. He uses his influence and power to manipulate and gets what he wants from people. With Yurielle he quickly learns that she is different and at first he is both highly irritated by this concept as well as intrigued.

As we get to know her we find out more details of her own personal life. She can relate to Raistlin in ways that end up surprising him. For she too had a twin though hers tragically died as a child. We also learn that Yurielle has led a life of isolation at the Tower of Wayreth. This makes her a bit awkward at times and she often questions how others view her. This isolation stems not only from the Conclave having kept her away from other, but also because Yurielle herself gives off a strangeness that other magic user's quickly pick up on. Most just tend to politely avoid her, however this strangeness is also one of the things that Raistlin is drawn to and finds fascinating about her.

Even though she puts of a bit of a confident front, inside Yurielle is fairly insecure about herself. She knows she is different and has tried to fit in but the seemingly avoidance of others during her life has forced her to turn her attentions to her personal interests, which she pursues with an almost obsessive quality.

Right away we learn that Yurielle is fascinated by curses and her magic/methods are unique in dealing with them. She doesn't fear black magic because in her heart she keeps herself in the opposite state to counter act it. And so, as she took shape through the chapters I realized that there would be something fundamentally different about her magic itself.

So what makes her magic so different? I've established by now that Yurielle not only has the arcane god given magic within her but she also is able to wield the ambient wild magic that infuses Krynn. What does this mean? How is this possible? Why did I choose to do this?

Buckle up as I try to explain my reasons! Again, sorry if I ramble!

The purpose of this chapter here is to shed light on my thought processes and reasons for why Yurielle's magic is the way that it is and to also let you know that I am not trying to create an all powerful and different kind of magic-user in my story. I hope that she has not come across as such. I am, in fact, using ideas pulled from Dungeons & Dragons itself.

Now I do understand that many of you probably do not particularly care about the gaming side of this universe and that is completely fine. So if this does not interest you then this might be boring and I hold no hard feelings if you stop reading this blurb about Yurielle right now. I also hope that my uber level of nerdiness isn't turning you off from my enjoying my story as well! :) When there is something I enjoy, I tend to go full out obsessive about it. I guess that's just my tendency.

Through this journey I have done a lot of research into the D&D aspect of the world of Dragonlance. I make no secret that I myself play Dungeons & Dragons so this became a challenge that I got excited about in trying to figure out and be able to weave aspects of it into the pages of my story. It has been a wonderful challenge that I have come to enjoy on a level I wasn't expecting. Even though it has been a GIANT pain in my ass! But I do hope that I am doing a good enough job that my tie ins with the game are not distracting from the over all story.

Feedback on this is always appreciated!

As I've researched and begun to write these elements into the story, one of the biggest problems I have run into is I have only played 5th edition D&D. The game mechanics of past editions seem convoluted and confusing and so I am trying to mold my story to fit what I know and understand about the way magic is used. But the challenge is that Krynn is EXTREMELY different than other D&D settings. Dragonlance follows the rules of editions 3.5 and lower and because of this, the structure of the rules of how things work are very different from what I know. Not only that, but Dragonlance _itself_ has its own unique rules which throw a giant monkey wrench into the whole process as well!

So here is as best of a summary that I can provide for you.

The world of Krynn basically has two kinds of magic. Arcane and Divine and both kinds are given by the gods themselves. After the Cataclysm, only the Arcane worked because the inhabitants no longer believed in the gods so there were no clerics to wield the divine magic. But the moons still remained and wizards believed that is where their power came from. Now if they believed the gods were gone or not I can't really say. I think some did and some didn't. The point is that Arcane magic still worked where the divine seemed to have completely disappeared.

Now in the typical settings of D&D you also have magic classes such as Druids, Bards, Warlocks and Sorcerer's. In the Dragonlance setting Druids also get their magic from gods where main D&D editions it comes from nature itself. So Druids are unique in this because even in the original chronicles trilogy, Druids are mentioned offhandedly. So perhaps not all divine magic disappeared? Perhaps they just thought the magic was granted by nature and not from gods same as the wizards and their magic? I can't really say for certain but this is what I believe to be the case. It's never gone into. At least, not that I have found so I could be wrong.

Anyway, Bards, Warlocks and Sorcerer's do NOT seem to exist in the early editions of the Dragonlance setting from what I can tell. However, that all changes in 3.5 for Dragonlance. For this edition was released during the Chaos War and into the 5th Age of the storyline.

With the breaking of the Greygem of Gargath, the Chaos War, and the subsequent stealing of Krynn by Takhisis, the gods lost their world and the inhabitants lost their powers. But the first magic was rediscovered and this is the wild magic. This is also known as Primal Sorcery.

High Sorcery was that the wizards came to call their art under the guidance of the gods. (This is a bit confusing. Wizards using the word Sorcery in their structure of magic and learning. However I can only assume this is just because their art stems FROM sorcery. But I'll get into that in a bit)

Primal Sorcery, aka Wild Magic, is what innately exists around the planet since it's creation in the form of the ambient energy that Krynn gives off. However, the first wielders of the magic misused this magic and it was often highly unstable. After a great disaster brought about by its use, the gods of magic (Solinari, Lunitari and Nuitari) stepped in and created the rules and laws that future magic-users would follow. So the three orders of wizards were borne. In time the wild magic that permeated the world seemed fade and was seemingly forgotten about. (Small side NOTE: from what I can find, dragons, unicorns and other magical creatures still draw their magic from the wild magic even before the 5th Age)

Then Takhisis betrayed everyone and the rest of the gods' influence disappeared.

Those that have read the books know that at the end of Dragons of Summer Flame, Takhisis stole Krynn and transported the planet to another part of the galaxy and thus began the 5th Age. I've also mentioned how I dislike the 5th Age story arc. However with it, wild magic was again brought back into both the story part of Dragonlance as well as the D&D part of it. We see this with Palin and Dalamar and the other mages in the War of Souls trilogy in the story part.

Now without the god given magic, the inhabitants of Krynn began to again wield this wild magic and thus players in 3.5 D&D were able to play bards and sorcerer's and other magic-users whose powers did not come from the gods.

This fact fascinated me and is a pretty neat story element from this edition of the Dragonlance setting. But, since I heavily dislike what happens to Krynn after the Chaos War I began to ask myself how can my original character perhaps be a kind of instrument to help with such an event?

So if it isn't clear by now. Yurielle is what would be known as a Wild Magic Sorcerer in the 5th Age setting. But what does this exactly mean and how does this differ from the magic that Wizards are able to cast?

Again the world and setting of Dragonlance is unique with its own rules and lore on how magic works. In Dragonlance Sorcerer's bend the ambient wild magic to their wills and shape the elements around them to cast spells. From my research, Sorcerer's have different schools in which they learn from and become proficient in. For example to cast something like Fireball, a Sorcerer draws upon the element of fire around them to shape the spell. From what I understand they need to be near such a source to be able to cast a lot of their spells, which is quite the interesting mechanic that I have never come across.

Here are excerpts from various Dragonlance D&D modules that I copied/summarized that explain a bit about how Primal Sorcery works:

“Sorcerers are said by many to wield a new form of arcane spellcasting, when, in truth, they are wielding one of the oldest forms of magic to be found on Krynn. The primordial arcane magic left over from the creation of the world resides within the very bones of the world.” pg 159 Towers of High Sorcery 2004 Wizards of the Coast supplement.  
“Sorcery has confused and befuddled even the greatest minds on Krynn. It is so basic an energy that those who were trained in the High Sorcery (wizards) often have trouble accepting its simplicity. Everything on Krynn contains sorcerous energy. The secret is that sorcerers must master this the ability to find that power and unlock it. Once the energy has been tapped, manipulating it is merely a matter of practice.

Simple rules sorceress must obey. Sorcerous energy is not an all-purpose power to use any way the caster sees fit. The source of the energy determines how it may be used, the power derived from the earth must be used to influence the earth...

The secret seems to lie in accepting things for what they are. Instead of trying to force sorcery to work in the same ways that High Sorcery did, students should cooperate with the energies they are releasing, allowing them to flow in natural patterns. 'No matter how sharp your pick is, you'll never tunnel through a river.' – is a common quote.

The potential uses for sorcery in many ways far outstrip those of High Sorcery. They are not bound by convention or ritual: they are restrained only by the limits of a sorcerers imagination.” - summarized from pg 35 of Heroes of Sorcery Dragonlance 5th Age TSR 1997.

The supplement then goes into the various schools of Primal Sorcery. I.e. Areomancy, Pyromancy, Cryomancy, ect.

In the world of the 5th Age it is also stated how there is much conflict between practitioners of Primal Sorcery and those of High Sorcery. The Wizards do not look kindly on Sorcerer's, often thinking them untrained and unworthy of magic because they do not go through the same trials and study as a Wizard does. So this creates much tension in the 5th Age books.

By contrast, Wizards of High Sorcery train and are schooled in their magic use. They take the Test of High Sorcery and only then can they study further and grow more powerful. The source of their power is granted by one of the three gods of Magic. When a wizard takes their Test they align themselves with either Solinari and become a white robed Wizard, Lunitari to take the neutral red robes or Nuitari to don the black robes of evil. This is another thing that makes Dragonlance Wizards so different, for their alignment and loyalty to their god of magic changes what spells they are able to learn. Their magic is also affected by the phases of the moons on the days they are casting their spells. It's a crazy in depth mechanic that also fascinated me and I wrote into my story to illustrated when the black moon is full, Raistlin's and Yurielle's magic is stronger. (Even if it causes Yurielle pain)

Anyway enough of that. I could go on and on about the differences but I think you can see how a Sorcerer is much different in their magic use than a Wizard. At least in the world of Dragonlance. In 5th edition D&D wizards learn through memorizing spells and Sorcerer's are born innately with magic ability. However both classes can cast the same spells as each other with a few exceptions as well as some differences in how many they can learn and use per day. In other past editions this was also different.

Now you may ask, why did I decide to drive myself insane by choosing this type of path for my original character?

The simple answer is I'm crazy! LOL

But to be honest I needed a reason of why Raitlin would even be interested in Yurielle in the first place. Magic is what Raistlin Majere lives for and has dedicated his life to. But what would he do if someone appeared that completely turned everything he understood on its head?

This is why Yurielle is so different. She's not only different in that Raistlin can see her but she's also different because her magic goes completely against what is currently known upon Krynn.

Okay maybe I need to also just give a basic overview of what I'm doing here. So here is the basic idea of what I'm overall trying to do with Yurielle being born in this time before the 5th Age. This may be a bit spoilery but I have, more or less, alluded to these things. This is basically the whole of it written in one place.

Continue to after **** if you don't want to read!

 

 

 

 

 

 

My story relies heavily on time and how there are potentially variations and other realities that exist based on our choices and events that happen around us. Using this idea in a simpler way I'm exploring not only a way to redeem Raistlin Majere, but also as a whole change the course of history.

The gods vaguely know that Raistlin ascended to become a god and rose to destroy the pantheon. That other timeline did indeed happen, but the God that Raistlin became in that one timeline managed to alter things when he found the last spark of the ambient magic.

Crushing it, he created a new stream of time and on this flow Yurielle was born with connection to the ambient in a time before the Chaos War. The gods of magic, knowing that Raistlin needed to change, allowed Yurielle to live on the condition that she work to bring wild magic back to Krynn. She must show the world of High Sorcery and its wielders, the Wizards, that they must have harmony.

However we will see if Yurielle can even achieve these things. She is to stand beside Raistlin to prevent him from his dark ascension but it's becoming obvious that the influence of Fistandantilus runs deep in the archmage.

Will things work out the way we want them too? Will Raistlin be able to free himself from Fistandantilus? Will he still ascend to godhood? Will Yurielle succeed in helping Raistlin and reawaken his humanity? Will she be able to unite the world of the arcane and wild magic?

I guess time will tell! ( ͡~ ͜ʖ ͡°)

 

 

 

 

 

****

 

 

Okay back to my summary. I'm nearly done with this crazy attempt at exploration!

When I play D&D myself, I enjoy crafting unique characters and I usually do what is called multiclassing. Having my character dip into more than one class. For example my gnome Ranger has dipped into Rogue and she is the sneakiest little trouble maker/death machine you have ever seen!

Side note: I've even created character sheets for Yurielle to follow that has both of her Sorcerer magic as well as her Wizard magic. I've even created Raistlin's sheet as well! I draw on these to keep their spellcasting as realistic as possible and it helps me better visualize their abilities and how often and what they can cast.

As I developed Yurielle is became clear that her magic was different and came from a completely different source. After learning about how Sorcerer's are so different in Dragonlance it became the obvious choice that her strange powers come from the ambient magic of Krynn.

This allowed me to both explore why she is so strange to other wizards as well as allow me to craft a different storyline that may or may not have an effect on the outcome of the Chaos War.

For me, the 5th Age is what really was the downfall of Dragonlance as a whole and is now another reason why I do not enjoy the War of Souls Trilogy.

I see the reasoning behind the 5th age when it comes to the rules for playing the game, but as a story, it left everything convoluted, bloated and, to me anyway, changed the very heart and feel of the whole universe. Alien dragons what now?!?!?! Argh **face palms**

On that line of thought - here's another spoiler alert!

 

 

As of right now, I do not plan on ending with the Star and the Hourglass! I do want to dive into the Chaos War and early 5th Age! Now don't get too excited. Things may change. But I have already begun to outline plans for a part 2 of this adventure. What all may happen and how we get there may change but the prospect of it is exciting to me.

Is it to you? Would you like to see where the adventures of these characters go and how they influence the outcome of that war? I'd love to know your thoughts!

But do keep in mind - one thing at a time friends!

 

 

I first need to get through this story and do what I set out to do in the first place. Which is to redeem Raistlin and give him the love and happier ending I think we all would like to see him get. First and foremost, that is my goal, anything else is secondary for now. Believe it or not, we have a long way to go with this tale! I have multiple side arcs I have planned and other aspects of Raistlin's character to explore in this story and I hope by the end, we all will be satisfied by what I've tried to deliver.

No matter what happens, I am honored and humbled by the support and feedback I've gotten so far. Do not be afraid to reach out to me or give me criticism or let me know your thoughts! If you wish to email me you can reach me at silver_glass01 at hot mail dot com

Okay I think for now that is plenty. I hope I was able to explain my reasons behind Yurielle's magic and her character.

Again your thoughts are welcome! Thanks again for reading :)

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter about Yurielle is in response to what happens and what is revealed in Chapter 31 of 'The Star and The Hourglass'. Here is the link directly to the chapter: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16941390/chapters/44936284


	7. Timeline of Raistlin's Dark Ascension

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE know that I do not own this information. It is taken directly from the 2005 Dungeons and Dragons Campaign setting - Legends of the Twins by Wizards of the Coast. I merely used it as reference in events for chapter 40 of my fan fic, The Star and the Hourglass.  
> Link to chapter 40 here - https://archiveofourown.org/works/16941390/chapters/47293996  
> I am posting this timeline of events in the vision here so that others may see how truly terrifying and messed up the end of Krynn was on the alternate timeline that Raistlin succeeded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are characters noted here in the timeline that I believe are only found in the campaign setting as NPC's that the D&D players learn of and can interact with while they go through the game. Perhaps they exist in some novel as well, but I have not come across them.

 

**Timeline**

In the year 876 PC, a strange book was brought to Astinus

of Palanthas: a volume of his history, the _Iconochronos_ ,

filled with strange dates and events that have not yet

happened. Astinus believes this to be a future volume that

has somehow traveled backward along the River. Scrawled

on the first page is the following text:

“I have failed. The spell sent me too far back. I cannot return: the device is

broken, and have lost the kender. May the gods forgive me.

~ Caramon Majere”

 

There is no indication of the fate of Caramon and

Tasslehoff, anywhere in history. Even Astinus does not

know what happened to them. The book has remained

in the library, a curiosity viewed by no one, but recent

events have brought it back to Astinus’s attention: what is

recorded on its pages seems to be coming true.

 

Following is the end of the history of Krynn, from

Thirdmonth in 356 to the end of the world as recorded by

Astinus of Palanthas in the Final Volume.

 

**Seventh Day, Thirdmonth, 356**

Brother Lanadon leaves Palanthas with the Six Volumes,

copies of the Final Volume.

 

**Eighteenth Day, Fourthmonth, 356**

Brother Lanadon delivers a copy of the Final Volume to

Dero Squireson in Solanthus.

 

**Third Day, Fifthmonth, 356**

Led by the Blue Lady and Lord Soth, the dragonarmy

arrives in Palanthas. Tanis Half-Elven falls in battle against

Lord Soth.

Raistlin emerges from the _portal_ in the Tower of High

Sorcery in Palanthas, followed by Takhisis. While the Battle

of Palanthas rages outside, Raistlin slays the Dark Queen.

Absorbing her power, he departs Krynn to do battle with

the gods.

 

**Fourth Day, Fifthmonth, 356**

The first magestorm strikes Palanthas, blasting the city to

ruins and killing all who survived the battle.

Brother Lanadon delivers a copy of the Final Volume to

Pelani Two-Axe in Sanction.

 

**Sixth Day, Fifthmonth, 356**

Night of the First Star.

 

**Twenty-Eighth Day, Fifthmonth, 356**

Brother Lanadon delivers a copy of the Final Volume to

Tika Majere in Solace.

 

**Tenth Day, Sixthmonth, 356**

Brother Lanadon delivers a copy of the Final Volume to

Unger Splitstone in Thorbardin.

 

**Twenty-Third Day, Sixthmonth, 356**

As panicked rumors about the contents of the Final

Volume swirl through the city, the Sanction Riots begin.

 

**Sixteenth Day, Seventhmonth, 356**

Raistlin slays Sirrion.

 

**Twenty-First Day, Seventhmonth, 356**

Night of the Second Star.

 

**Twenty-Eighth Day, Seventhmonth, 356**

Raistlinites appear for the first time, in Beacon on the

north shores of Northern Ergoth. Their leader, Ivel

Batavos, declares that only those who have been raised by a

lightstorm will survive the coming times.

 

**Second Day, Eighthmonth, 356**

Raistlin slays Reorx. Brother Lanadon is killed by a

magestorm somewhere on the southern plains.

 

**Sixth Day, Eighthmonth, 356**

Night of the Third Star.

 

**Twentieth Day, Eighthmonth, 356**

The red dragon Harkiel establishes control over the streets

of Sanction and seals the gates of the city, protecting and

providing for its inhabitants in return for their fealty.

 

**Twenty-Seventh Day, Eighthmonth, 356**

Raistlin slays Chislev and Zivilyn.

 

**Ninth Day, Ninthmonth, 356**

A white magestorm passes over the High Clerist’s Tower

and raises fallen Knights of Solamnia, including Sturm

Brightblade.

 

**Twenty-Eighth Day, Ninthmonth, 356**

Night of the Fourth Star.

 

**Fifth Day, Tenthmonth, 356**

Raistlin battles Kiri-Jolith, but is wounded and forced to

retreat.

 

**Thirteenth Day, Tenthmonth, 356**

The Armies of Reorx depart Thorbardin.

 

**Twenty-Fifth Day, Tenthmonth, 356**

Brother Lanadon is raised by a magestorm and resumes his

journey.

 

**Twenty-Seventh Day, Tenthmonth, 356**

Raistlin fights Kiri-Jolith again, and slays him with the aid

of Chemosh.

 

**Second Day, Eleventhmonth, 356**

Night of the Fifth Star.

 

**Seventh Day, Eleventhmonth, 356**

Convinced by Ivel Batavos that the only way to survive

the end of the world is to be raised by a magestorm in

the aftermath, 400 people in the farming town of Penslip

in Kharolis allow themselves to be sacrificed by the

Raistlinites.

 

**Tenth Day, Eleventhmonth, 356**

Brother Lanadon visits Clarynela Oakleaf in Silvanost. She

refuses to accept a copy of the Final Volume.

 

**Fifthteenth Day, Eleventhmonth, 356**

As Sanction runs short on supplies, troops sent by Harkiel

raid and pillage in the Neraka valley.

 

**Fifth Day, Twelfthmonth, 356**

Pelani Two-Axe stages an ambush on Harkiel’s troops as

they return to Sanction.

 

**Eighteenth Day, Twelfthmonth, 356**

The Raistlinites continue to gather followers as their bands

raid and slaughter towns across southern Ansalon.

 

**First Day, Firstmonth, 357**

The Silvanesti close their borders.

 

**Twelfth Day, Firstmonth, 357**

South of Khuri-Khan, Brother Lanadon is waylaid by

bandits. He is left for dead, and his belongings — including

the last two copies of the Final Volume — are sold to

traders headed into the city.

 

**Twenty-First Day, Firstmonth, 357**

The Armies of Reorx battle a band of Raistlinites

attempting to destroy the town of Wallach on the Plains of

Dust.

 

**Ninth Day, Secondmonth, 357**

Sargonnas attacks Raistlin, but Raistlin slays him.

 

**Eleventh Day, Secondmonth, 357**

Night of the Sixth Star.

 

**Nineteenth Day, Secondmonth, 357**

Believing that the magegod will reappear in the city,

Raistlinites begin to gather in Palanthas.

 

**Twenty-Third Day, Secondmonth, 357**

Led by Paladine, the remaining major deities battle Raistlin

in the Abyss. Majere, Shinare, Hiddukel, and Zeboim fall,

but Raistlin is forced to flee back to Krynn.

 

**Twenty-Eighth Day, Secondmonth, 357**

The Armies of Reorx lay siege to Solace in hopes of

preventing the return of Raistlin.

 

**Second Day, Thirdmonth, 357**

Bypassing the siege, Raistlin returns to Solace to perform

a ritual in the woods east of the town. He is confronted by

Tika Waylan Majere, but the Magegod drives her away.

 

**Third Day, Thirdmonth, 357**

Despite interference by the Armies of Reorx, Raistlin is

partially rejuvenated by the completion of his ritual. The

vallenwoods of Solace begin to die.

 

**Fourteenth Day, Thirdmonth, 357**

The Raistlinites gathered in Palanthas rejoice when Raistlin

arrives. Any who approach the Magegod are killed as he

ventures into the ruins of the Tower of Palanthas.

 

**Twenty-Second Day, Thirdmonth, 357**

Raistlin travels to the Tower of Wayreth. Par-Salian, with

the assistance of an army of wizards, manages to drive

away the weakened Magegod. Raistlin vows revenge.

 

**Ninth Day, Fourthmonth, 357**

The first dead vallenwood falls in Solace, crushing the Inn

of the Last Home.

 

**Seventeenth Day, Fourthmonth, 357**

Raistlin slays Solinari when the silver moon is full. The

three moons shatter.

 

**Eighteenth Day, Fourthmonth, 357**

Pieces of the three moons begin to rain down on Krynn.

The rain will last a year.

 

**Eighteenth Day, Fifthmonth, 357**

Night of the Seventh Star.

 

**Fourth Day, Sixthmonth, 357**

Raistlin slays Mishakal.

 

**Twelfth Day, Sixthmonth, 357**

Night of the Eighth Star.

 

**Thirteenth Day, Sixthmonth, 357**

The Green Month begins, Mishakal’s last gift to the mortals

of Krynn. For the next four weeks, no magestorms occur.

 

**Twelfth Day, Seventhmonth, 357**

The Green Month ends as magestorms return to ravage the

land.

 

**Eighteenth Day, Eighthmonth, 357**

The geothermal systems of Mount Nevermind fail as the

lava flows of the volcano increase beyond the ability of

gnomish devices to control them. Lava floods down the

south face of the mountain, destroying many gnomish

settlements, and into the woodlands of southern Sancrist,

setting them ablaze.

 

**Sixth Day, Ninthmonth, 357**

With Chemosh’s help, Raistlin slays Branchala, Habbakuk,

and Morgion in a single day.

 

**Fourteenth Day, Ninthmonth, 357**

Night of the Ninth Star.

 

**Fifteenth Day, Ninthmonth, 357**

Night of the Tenth Star.

 

**Sixteenth Day, Ninthmonth, 357**

Night of the Eleventh Star.

 

**Second Day, Tenthmonth, 357**

The largest white magestorm ever seen passes over

Palanthas, raising all those who fell in the Battle of

Palanthas and the Raistlinites killed seven months earlier.

The Second Battle of Palanthas ensues.

 

**Seventeenth Day, Tenthmonth, 357**

Harkiel captures Pelani Two-Axe.

 

**Twenty-First Day, Tenthmonth, 357**

Pelani Two-Axe is publicly executed.

 

**Seventeenth Day, Eleventhmonth, 357**

The gnomish craft H.V.C.E.V.P.C.T.R. (High Velocity

Contained Environment Vehicle Propelled by Constant

Thermodynamic Reaction) _Observer_ launches from Mount

Nevermind, bound for the rubble of the moons. It is not

heard from again.

 

**Nineteenth Day, Eleventhmonth, 357**

The bandits once led by Pelani Two-Axe redirect a lava

flow into the heart of Sanction, destroying it. The city’s red

dragon ruler is driven away.

 

**Twenty-Fourth Day, Eleventhmonth, 357**

Magestorms gather around Silvanesti. Despite the efforts of

elven wizards, they do not pass by or dissipate.

 

**Twentieth Day, Twelfthmonth, 357**

Lunitari attempts to ally with Raistlin, and he nearly

accepts, but Chemosh steps in and murders her, claiming

she was attempting to fool Raistlin. Enraged, Raistlin

realizes that Chemosh has been siphoning some of the

power of the defeated gods for himself. He destroys the

death god.

 

**Twenty-Seventh Day, Twelfthmonth, 357**

Raistlin challenges and defeats Nuitari.

 

**Twenty-Eighth Day, Twelfthmonth, 357**

Night of the Twelfth Star.

 

**Second Day, Firstmonth, 358**

Astinus of Palanthas leaves the ruins of the Library, bound

for the Forest of Wayreth.

 

**Fourth Day, Firstmonth, 358**

A magestorm strikes Solace for the first time, after which

the area is hit continuously, with no respite or lightstorms

passing through the area.

 

**Twenty-Fifth Day, Firstmonth, 358**

The Maelstrom reverses, becoming a massive waterspout

pulling the Blood Sea into the sky. “Blood rain” begins to

fall across northern Ansalon.

 

**Ninth Day, Secondmonth, 358**

Tika Waylan Majere is struck

by a bolt from a magestorm

and dies.

 

**Thirteenth Day, Secondmonth, 358**

The amassed magestorms

break through the magical

barriers around Silvanesti to

ravage its forests and people.

 

**Twenty-Second Day, Secondmonth, 358**

The magestorm over

Silvanesti swells, absorbing

other magestorms as it grows.

 

**Seventeenth Day, Thirdmonth, 358**

The last lightstorm dissipates.

None are ever seen again.

 

**Twenty-Sixth Day, Thirdmonth, 358**

Astinus of Palanthas arrives at the Tower of High Sorcery

in Wayreth Forest.

 

**Seventh Day, Fourthmonth, 358**

One massive magestorm covers all Ansalon.

 

**Eighteenth Day, Fourthmonth, 358**

The Rain of Moonshards ends.

 

**Twenty-Second Day, Fourthmonth, 358**

Gilean makes one final appeal to Raistlin, warning him

that if he continues on his path he will irrevocably upset

the balance of Creation. Raistlin destroys him.

 

**Twenty-Fifth Day, Fourthmonth, 358**

Night of the Thirteenth Star. Raistlin’s constellation is

complete.

 

**First Day, Fifthmonth, 358**

The magestorm envelops all Krynn.

 

**Third Day, Fifthmonth, 358**

As he prepares for his final battle with Paladine, Raistlin

forces open the portal in the Tower of Wayreth. He slays all

the mages but Par-Salian, whom he transforms into a pillar

from the waist down, so he can watch Krynn’s final hours.

 

**Fourth Day, Fifthmonth, 358**

Raistlin destroys Paladine. The world ends. The history of

Krynn is complete.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *shudders*


End file.
